Chinese Azurite Specimens
There are all grades of azurite being found in China. Some is basically massive and not of collector grade. Others show vugs and crystals of small size which are bright and flashy but also common. Some better material has a fine luster and deep blue color not unlike that of the more famous azurite locations such as Tsumeb, Bisbee and Morocco. In rare instances everything comes together and the specimens have all the desired traits of any fine azurite. We tend to focus on the very best azurites and seldom purchase the lower end material which is readily available at any mineral show for a low price.
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OKE-270 Azurite Ball Chengmenshan, Jiangxi Prov., China. I will begin by saying that these are among some of the finest azurite specimens I have ever seen from any location. They are highly aesthetic and composed of large crystals. I found a total of nine of these beauties at this year’s Tucson show and grabbed them all up. There were a couple others which had noticeable damage which I passed on. They are likely from an old find which did produce a few nice balls like this. They were certainly few and far between then. Now they are nearly impossible to find. This ball is well formed measuring 8 x 6.9 x 5.8 cm and is the top deep blue color that one expects in a top azurite (and which is nearly impossible to photograph well). The crystals are blocky and radiate out in fan like patterns with single crystals averaging about .5 to a cm on single edges. Minor touch marks to a few crystals but not at all distracting to the appearance of this fine piece. A free floater which is displayable from any angle and quite amazing. A exceptional, aesthetic and rare specimen at this level of quality. 1,100$
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OKE-271 Azurite Ball Chengmenshan, Jiangxi Prov., China. I will begin by saying that these are among some of the finest azurite specimens I have ever seen from any location. They are highly aesthetic and composed of large crystals. I found a total of nine of these beauties at this year’s Tucson show and grabbed them all up. There were a couple others which had noticeable damage which I passed on. They are likely from an old find which did produce a few nice balls like this. They were certainly few and far between then. Now they are nearly impossible to find. This ball is well formed measuring 8.2 x 7 x 5.7 cm and is the deep blue color that one expects in a top azurite (and which is nearly impossible to photograph well). The crystals are blocky and radiate out in fan like patterns with single crystals to a cm on single edges. Some areas have small contacts to crystals but not at all distracting to the appearance of this fine piece. The base on this one is flat and not mineralized so it is not a true floater but displays with nice views from every side and angle. A great example of difficult to get material. 400$
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OKE-272 Azurite Ball Chengmenshan, Jiangxi Prov., China. I will begin by saying that these are among some of the finest azurite specimens I have ever seen from any location. They are highly aesthetic and composed of large crystals. I found a total of nine of these beauties at this year’s Tucson show and grabbed them all up. There were a couple others which had noticeable damage which I passed on. They are likely from an old find which did produce a few nice balls like this. They were certainly few and far between then. Now they are nearly impossible to find. This ball is well formed measuring 7 x 7 x 5 cm and is the deep blue color that one expects in a top azurite (and which is nearly impossible to photograph well). The crystals are blocky and radiate out in fan like patterns with single crystals to 1.3 cm on single edges. Some areas have small contacts to crystals but not at all distracting to the appearance of this fine piece. A little very minor malachite pseudomorphing. This one is a fully crystallized floater which is not perfectly round (more flattened in appearance. A great example of difficult to get material with large crystals and excellent aesthetics from all views, including beneath! 700$
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OKE-273 Azurite Ball Chengmenshan, Jiangxi Prov., China. I will begin by saying that these are among some of the finest azurite specimens I have ever seen from any location. They are highly aesthetic and composed of large crystals. I found a total of nine of these beauties at this year’s Tucson show and grabbed them all up. There were a couple others which had noticeable damage which I passed on. They are likely from an old find which did produce a few nice balls like this. They were certainly few and far between then. Now they are nearly impossible to find. This ball is well formed measuring 5.5 x 4 x 4.2 cm and is the deep blue color that one expects in a top azurite (and which is nearly impossible to photograph well). The crystals are blocky and radiate out in fan like patterns with single crystals to a cm on single edges. Some areas have small contacts to crystals but not at all distracting to the appearance of this fine piece. The back on this piece is poorly mineralized so it is not a true floater but displays with nice views from every side and angle except the back. A great example of difficult to get material. 375$
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OKE-274 Azurite Ball Chengmenshan, Jiangxi Prov., China. I will begin by saying that these are among some of the finest azurite specimens I have ever seen from any location. They are highly aesthetic and composed of large crystals. I found a total of nine of these beauties at this year’s Tucson show and grabbed them all up. There were a couple others which had noticeable damage which I passed on. They are likely from an old find which did produce a few nice balls like this. They were certainly few and far between then. Now they are nearly impossible to find. This ball is well formed measuring 6.2 x 6 x 5 cm and is the deep blue color that one expects in a top azurite (and which is nearly impossible to photograph well). The crystals are blocky and radiate out in fan like patterns with single crystals to 1.3 cm on single edges. Some areas have small contacts to crystals but not at all distracting to the appearance of this fine piece. The base is poorly mineralized but all other sides including the back view great. A very aesthetic example of this tough to find material. 400$
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OKE-222 Azurite and Malachite Jiangxi Prov., China. A primary vug and other openings showing deep blue azurite crystals (small) and green malachite crystals. Attractive. Measures 8 x 7 x 5 cm. 45$
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OKE-073 Azurite Ball Chengmenshan, Jiangxi Prov., China. I will begin by saying that these are among some of the finest azurite specimens I have ever seen from any location. They are highly aesthetic and composed of large crystals. I found a total of nine of these beauties at this year’s Tucson show and grabbed them all up. There were a couple others which had noticeable damage which I passed on. They are likely from an old find which did produce a few nice balls like this. They were certainly few and far between then. Now they are nearly impossible to find. This ball is well formed measuring 7.4 cm in diameter and is the deep blue color that one expects in a top azurite (and which is nearly impossible to photograph well). The crystals are more blade like and up to a cm in size each. There is some minor malachite pseudomorphing. Damage free floater which is displayable from any angle and quite amazing. 420$
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OKE-194 Azurite Ball Chengmenshan, Jiangxi Prov., China. This fine azurite ball is highly aesthetic and composed of large crystals. I found a total of nine of these beauties at this year’s Tucson show and grabbed them all up. There were a couple others which had noticeable damage which I passed on. They are likely from an old find which did produce a few nice balls like this. They were certainly few and far between then. Now they are nearly impossible to find. This ball is well formed measuring 6 x 5.8 x 5.2 cm and is the deep blue color that one expects in a top azurite (and which is nearly impossible to photograph well). The crystals are thick and blocky and very large. Some crystals are up to 2 cm each and most are well over a cm on edge. This floater is displayable from any angle and quite amazing. There are a couple minor rubs that are not readily evident. This is a top shelf azurite specimen at a low price due to the overall lack of appreciation of these fine minerals from China. Killer specimen…. 600$
